A CUSTOMER has been fined more than £2,800 after inadvertently paying criminals to get rid of building waste that was instead fly-tipped in the grounds of Stanmore’s Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital.
Brian Berkery, 61, was cold-called by three men on February 8 who offered to remove the construction rubbish for £225. He accepted but the same afternoon the trio dumped the 3.5 tonnes at the hospital in Brockley Hill.
Harrow Council’s Enviro-crime team discovered paperwork among the waste and traced this back to Berkery, and arranged for the mess to be cleared up at a cost to the taxpayer of £700.
Samantha Cooley, accommodation manager at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital Trust, said a resident reported hearing a loud bang outside the hospital accommodation and saw a truck speeding away. The road was left blocked with building materials and other household items.
Ms Cooley said: “Whilst moving the rubbish to the side of the road, we found emails, letters and a quote of works with contractor’s details. We immediately contacted the council and the Enviro-crime officer swiftly took over the investigation.
“I think we were all determined not to let the culprits get away with thinking they could dump their rubbish anywhere without any consequences.”
Berkery was charged with ‘failing to take all reasonable measures to prevent a contravention of the Environment Protection Act by the unauthorised or harmful, treatment or disposal of waste’, and with ‘failing as an occupier of a domestic property to take all such measures available to you as were reasonable in the circumstances to secure that any transfer by you of household waste produced on the property was only to an authorised person or to a person for authorised transport purposes’.
Berkery said at Willesden Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, September 3 that not all the fly-tipped rubbish was his, but he was convicted of both counts.
The 61-year-old had failed to get any names or check that the cold-callers were authorised to get rid of the waste. The three men are believed to be active criminals and have never been traced.
Berkery, of Greencroft Gardens, Hampstead, north-west London, was fined a total of £2,825.
Councillor Asad Omar (Independent Labour), the then-portfolio holder for environment, said: “It is a great shame this man has had to pay after being duped, but that is the law.
“I ask residents to be careful and not to give waste to anyone who knocks on your door. If you need to have waste collected, check on the internet or a directory to find a reputable company and take details of the vehicle that is used so that waste is disposed of safely.”
